


Of Free Fancy

by brilligspoons



Series: but for endless ifs [1]
Category: The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-11-29
Updated: 2011-11-29
Packaged: 2017-10-26 16:00:30
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/285159
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brilligspoons/pseuds/brilligspoons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>For the prompt <i>Steve+Pepper, Starbucks</i> - in which Steve and Pepper get to know each other and nothing of consequence actually happens.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Of Free Fancy

Before today, Steve could count on one hand the number of times he'd been allowed to leave the SHIELD base, and that included the time he and the newly-formed Avengers had to save the world from Loki. He doesn't quite understand Fury's reasoning now, though - they've defeated one enemy, and there are sure to be more following in its footsteps, but surely he's earned the right to have a place of his own somewhere, the chance to get out and explore the modern world. And, really, it's _New York City_. Steve grew up here, and he's not likely to forget how to get around, regardless of whether he'd been asleep for seven seconds or seventy years. Fury, of course, always gives him this pityingly, _son I know better than you and don't you forget it_ look every time Steve brings it up.

He's resolutely _not_ pouting over the latest refusal (delivered by Natasha this time. Clint had been the last messenger, and Bruce the time before that - Steve's beginning to think Fury is avoiding him) when Pepper Potts walks by him at a brisk pace, latches onto his arm, and pulls him along until he catches up to her properly.

"Can I, uh, help you with something, Ms. Potts?" he asks.

"Call me Pepper, please," she replies, "and don't talk, just keep going. We're not quite free yet." She hands him a winter coat and motions for him to slip it on as they continue walking.

Steve has absolutely no idea what's going on, but since that's been his life for the last six months or so, he goes along with it. Pepper has never given him a reason to distrust her, after all, and he admits that he's slightly in awe of the way she handles Tony on a regular basis. And, of course, it looks like they're headed for an exit, which Steve _really_ appreciates. The pace at which they walk plus the excitement of doing something against explicit orders, not to mention the idea of getting to go outside, make Steve's heart jump in his chest.

Tony's driver Happy is waiting for them as they exit the building, and they're getting into the car before Steve even hears an agent calling after them. He glances out the back of the Rolls, sees three or four men in suits gesturing at them and talking into their ear pieces.

"That is probably the most exciting thing I've done since I broke past enemy lines to rescue 200 men from the Red Skull's factory," Steve says.

"Really?" Happy says. "Loki ripping apart most of Midtown didn't spark a thrill in you?"

"Well, maybe a little."

Pepper snorts. "'A little,' he says. Happy, take us just outside the park, please. Starbucks, if you can." She angles herself and stares at Steve. He gets the impression that she's looking for something, though _what_ , Steve isn't sure.

"Thank you," he stammers. "For springing me, I mean."

"Absolutely no trouble," Pepper replies. She smiles at Steve. "Tony said you were starting to go stir crazy in there."

"Oh?"

Pepper nods. "The exact phrasing escapes me, but I believe it had something to do with turning into a ghost and haunting SHIELD for the rest of eternity, but you know how Tony likes to exaggerate."

Steve laughs and turns away from her, watches the crowds of tourists on the sidewalk as Happy maneuvers them away from Time Square and up toward the MET. They ride in near silence the rest of the way, the quiet only broken by Happy asking Pepper when and where she wants to stop.

"That one," Pepper says suddenly. "We can walk over to the park and the museums from there."

"You sure?" asks Happy. "I'd be happy to wait for you."

"No, you need to go back and make sure Tony gets to the R&D meeting at the Tower," she replies. "Captain Rogers and I will be fine."

Happy drops them at 78th and Lex outside a Starbucks, which Pepper quickly ushers Steve over to once the car has driven off again. Steve stares up at the big green sign on the building as they walk underneath it, and, all of a sudden, it occurs to him he doesn't have any cash on him. The last time he'd been to one of these cafes, Tony had paid for everything.

"Don't worry about it," says Pepper with a wave of her hand after he says as much to her. She opens the door for him and motions for him to enter. "This one's on Tony, too. Well, most things are on Tony, but this one specifically."

It clicks, and Steve whips his head around sharply to look at her. "Tony orchestrated this?" he demands. Pepper shrugs.

"Two things: one, he likes you, and two, he _loves_ getting one up on Fury," she explains. "He couldn't resist satisfying two impulses with one act. Now, Captain Rogers, what are you drinking?"

"You can call me Steve, you know," he murmurs. Pepper smiles at him again and nods her head in the direction of the wall.

Steve stares up at the menu, completely and utterly lost in the multitude of choices he apparently has. The waitress ( _barista,_ Steve reminds himself, _Tony called them baristas_ ) taps her fingernails across the counter and sighs heavily at him. "Uh," he says, "I don't exactly know -"

"He'll have a grande no whip caramel brulee latte," Pepper says from behind him.

Steve turns his head and blinks at her. "No whip?" he asks feebly. She rolls her eyes and nudges him out of the way to hand the girl a shimmering black credit card with Tony's name emblazoned on it.

"Walk with me," Pepper says once they've picked up their drinks from the bar. She grabs Steve by the elbow and steers him outside, then loops her arm around his once they've cleared the crowd. "I don't often get a chance to gossip with Captain America. Actually, I've barely had any time to say anything but 'hello' and 'goodbye' since we met."

Steve trips over a pile of snow. "Fury tends to keep me occupied on base, or tries to, anyway," he says. "What are we gossiping about?"

She shrugs. "The hot topic of the week is whether you wear boxers or briefs under that uniform of yours," she says, "but I'll settle for learning your opinion on early 20th century art."

He ducks his head and grins widely. "I'm better at the Impressionist and Pre-Raphaelites, to be honest," Steve admits. "But there was one painting, artist name of Klee, that I liked a lot. Spent a fair amount of a paycheck to see it on display when it appeared in the city."

"Am I allowed to guess which one?" Pepper asks.

"Or I could just tell you," replies Steve. " _The_ -"

" _Twittering Machine_ ," she finishes. Steve scoffs at her. "What? Didn't think I would guess?"

"Alright, ace," Steve says, squeezing her arm lightly, "let's see if you can guess this one, if I'm such an open book to you."

They wander into Central Park eventually, leaving the throngs of people entering and exiting the MET behind. It's easier, once they're on the walking paths, to play their guessing game - less people means less noise, and Steve revels in it. Though he's a New Yorker through and through, used to the hum of city life at all hours of the day, he relishes the relative quiet of the park, the ability to have a conversation with someone without having to shout to be heard. Pepper, he discovers, knows more about art than anyone he's ever spoken with, her passion for it evident in the way she explains Pollock to him and the disdain with which she talks about Tony donating their collection.

"It's not that the Boy Scouts aren't a worthy cause," she seethes, "but those were _my_ paintings. His money, sure, but I spent ten years of my life working on them."

Steve nods along to her stories, interjects his own when he has them, but mostly he lets her talk. Pepper reminds him, in some ways, of Peggy, and the similarities are comforting rather than aggravating. They walk for what seems like hours and hours, but when he looks at his watch next, it's barely noon. "Lunch?" he suggests. Pepper nods.

"And then a museum," she says. She looks over to her right, and Steve follows her line of sight. Somehow they've managed to walk out of the park and down twenty blocks to the MOMA. Steve blinks, and Pepper pats his arm. "I thought you might like to see _The Twittering Machine_ again," she continues. "But yes, food first. I'm starving."

"And after the museum, I'll have to go back to SHIELD." Steve sighs.

"I wouldn't worry about that," Pepper tells him. She waves her cell phone in his face. "Tony's been fighting with Fury all morning and seems to have won finally. You've got a suite in Stark Tower waiting for you as soon as we're done."

Steve lets loose a burst of surprised laughter, and Pepper grins at him. "Lunch, though?" he asks.

"Lead the way, Captain Rogers," Pepper says, and off they go.


End file.
